


Mamihlapinatapai

by archangelwithashotgun



Series: Tumblr Prompts [46]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Castiel Can Hear Longing, Castiel Is So Done, Emotionally Repressed, Kissing, M/M, Mamihlapinatapai, One Word Prompts, Pre-Slash, Sabriel - Freeform, Shy Sam, Slash, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-20
Updated: 2016-05-20
Packaged: 2018-06-09 15:08:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6912202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/archangelwithashotgun/pseuds/archangelwithashotgun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mamihlapinatapai (Yagan): the wordless, yet meaningful look shared by two people who both desire to initiate something but are both reluctant to start.</p>
<p>It started with a lingering glance.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mamihlapinatapai

It started with a lingering glance.

Sam took moments out of his day where he would briefly turn and just admire the archangel from afar, a soft and fond smile gracing his lips. It didn’t matter what Gabriel was doing; the Trickster could be absently sucking on a lollipop, gingerly flipping through lore books in the library, indulging in the human activity of sleeping, watching television, or generally just being there in front of Sam, hands waving animatedly as he talked. The hunter would find some physical characteristic or personality quirk he had not noticed before and he’d spend the next moment mulling it over in his head, cherishing his new discovery.

If Gabriel were to ever turn and catch Sam in the act, amber waves of irises flickering curiously, Sam would simply widen his smile and nod in acknowledgement before dipping his head shyly. Occasionally, he would see the blurry outline of Gabriel grinning in his peripheral vision before the archangel returned to his task.

This little nonverbal exchange went on for quite a while, eventually progressing into something deeper and undeniable.

It was present in the way Sam crouched in front of Gabriel when the archangel managed to get himself hurt, his gorgeous melt of hazel eyes flooding frantically with heart-wrenching concern as they stared deep into golden oceans.

It was present in the way Gabriel glared at Sam whenever Sam went on a self-deprecating spree, fiery flames practically spitting through as Gabriel cupped his hands around Sam’s tear-stained face and firmly listed every single beautiful thing about what Sam did and who he was.

It was present in the way the two of them spoke to each other, interacted with each other, _looked_ at each other. It was all right there, right out in the open. But neither of them stepped forward to complete what they so truly wanted.

For all the insecurities Sam revealed to Gabriel about himself, he never mentioned the notion that Gabriel just didn’t love Sam like Sam loved Gabriel. The seed was planted the first time Sam took notice of Gabriel’s increasing attention toward him. The seed grew rapidly with every passing day that Gabriel said and did nothing, until there was a forest of intertwining and conflicting emotions, coiling and growing and crowding his mind with doubt and self-criticism.

But… It was _right there_. It shined so brightly in Gabriel’s eyes that Sam had to hold on to some sort of hope that Gabriel might actually love him. It was just growing harder every day to hold onto that.

He had no way of knowing that Gabriel was going through the same exact thought process as well, and the hunter and the archangel suffered in silence, unaware of the other’s inner turmoil.

A resolution finally came one day, though surprisingly it was not in the form of Sam or Gabriel spilling out declarations.

It came in the form of a very, _very_ angry Castiel.

They were in the Men of Letters’ dungeon, sorting through their old videos and texts. Save for the occasional quip from Gabriel and the snarky response from Sam that left the archangel grinning, the three of them were relatively silent.

Then Castiel loudly dropped the box he was searching through and stiffly turned around, stalking towards the exit.

Startled, Sam’s brows pinched together in concern and he took a step away from the shelf he was scanning. “Uh, Cas? Are you okay?” he asked.

“Don’t follow me,” came the short reply.

Gabriel’s lower lip jutted forward in a confused pout and he sprang to his feet from his position on the floor. “Cassafras! Where do you think you’re—“

“I’m going to lock you both in here.”

“ _What_?” both archangel and hunter said in unison.

“Why? Cas, what are you doing?” Sam questioned, highly bewildered by the angel’s behavior. Gabriel stepped up to stand beside him, watching his younger brother leave the room with a befuddled expression.

“I am locking you both in here,” Castiel started, whirling around to face them once he reached the doorway, “so that you could ‘stow your crap,’ as you and Dean say so eloquently. I am locking you in here so that you gain some level of sense. Because Sam, you love Gabriel, and Gabriel, you love Sam.”

Both Sam and Gabriel gave a jolt at this blunt statement coming from Castiel, both pairs of eyes widening in twin panic.

“And I’m locking you in here so that you _do_ something about it for once, because it pains me that you haven’t already, and you’re not leaving until you do,” Castiel said in a huff. “So… I shall hopefully see you both soon.”

With that, the seraph turned and walked out of the room, the door slamming shut behind him.

Gabriel immediately lifted his palm toward the entryway, his eyes glowing with something akin to the sun’s radiance, before he dropped it with a frustrated growl.

“Little brat warded it,” Gabriel bit out. “He _warded_ it. We gotta hide those books on archangel lore before they fall into the wrong hands.”

As he spoke, Gabriel’s cheeks slowly tinted with a pink blush, and the archangel set his jaw and turned away, mumbling about ‘meddling little brothers’ to hide his embarrassment.

Sam, on the other hand, openly gaped at Gabriel. Castiel’s revelation had to be true in order for Gabriel to be reacting in this way, right? Sam liked to think he knew more about Gabriel than he previously believed, but in regards to Gabriel’s feelings toward him? It was never a topic he dared broach upon with confidence.

“Gabriel?” Sam muttered tentatively.

“ _What_ , Sam?” Gabriel snapped, bringing a palm to run at his jawline. Sam flinched at the vibrating power underneath the anger of Gabriel’s voice. Seeing this, the archangel sighed in weariness, turning to pace away, keeping his eyes away from Sam the entire time. “Just… what?”

Sam swallowed roughly. Maybe he had been wrong, and maybe Castiel had been wrong as well, but Gabriel had to be reacting in this way for a reason. So with no other option left, he took his chance.

“Castiel was right,” Sam whispered.

Gabriel stiffened, coming to a halt in his pacing, but he didn’t say anything. It wasn’t necessarily encouraging, but Sam took in a calming breath and pressed on.

“At-At least about me,” Sam continued, fighting fiercely to keep from stammering further as his heart began pulsing in his throat. “He was right. I… I just…”

Gabriel got the message. As Sam spoke, Gabriel stood up straight and faced Sam once more. Their eyes instantly sought each other, the sun meeting the earth, and Sam watched with rapidly dissipating distress as Gabriel’s slowly began to shine as the archangel smiled.

It was not a cruel, mocking, playful, or teasing smile.

It was Gabriel’s true smile, the one that stretched across his whole face, the one that narrowed his eyes in delight, the one that caused his eyes to gleam with everything Sam had been seeing the entire time they had their little affair.

“You… You mean you—“ Gabriel started to ask, his expression glowing, and Sam was nodding before Gabriel could formulate his sentence. A rush of air escaped Gabriel, and suddenly the archangel was walking those few steps toward Sam. “Damn it all, get _down_ here.”

A hand curled around his neck and yanked down hard. Before Sam could do more than stumble forward and suck in a gasp, his lips were on Gabriel’s, and he was immediately overwhelmed with the _completion_ of the action.

_Finally_.

Gabriel’s lips tasted sweet, as Sam always figured and imagined they would. Sam whispered out a moan and sank deeper into the kiss, his arms slipping around Gabriel’s torso as Gabriel’s free hand gripped at Sam’s hip. Sam parted his lips on cue as Gabriel’s tongue swept up into his mouth. An explosion of caramel flooded Sam’s mouth, and Sam groaned as he pressed in tighter against Gabriel’s lips, tongue coiling in deeper.

Gabriel keened lightly at the action, and with clear reluctance he pulled away from Sam’s lips, panting lightly as he stared up at Sam. His eyes were clouded this time, dazed and truly, ridiculously happy.

“Cas…” Gabriel murmured, “He was telling the truth about me too.”

Sam huffed out a breath of amusement, chuckling lowly. 

“Good,” was all he said before he captured Gabriel’s mouth in another hungry kiss, desperate to make up for lost time.

::

Outside, Castiel grinned and pushed off of the wall beside the doorway. Waving his hand briefly, he removed the wards from the exit, though he was fairly certain that Sam and Gabriel would be too busy being engrossed in one another that they wouldn’t even notice.

His job done and feeling extremely satisfied, Castiel turned and began his departing trek down the hall, leaving the dungeon and those inside it behind.


End file.
